Should the Bengals extend Tyler Eifert or Tyler Kroft?

The Bengals currently do not have a tight end under contract for 2019 that’s played in regular-season game.

Entering the 2018 season, the Bengals have Tyler Eifert, Tyler Kroft and C.J. Uzomah set to play in contract years. It’s crazy to think the Bengals will let all three of them go next year, so one would think the team will make a push to get an extension done for at least one of them.

Eifert is the most notable of the three and easily has the most upside. However, he finished this past season on Injured Reserve after undergoing surgeries on his back and knee to fix the nagging issues he’s been dealing with over the past year. He played two games this past season, and his absence was felt as the Bengals struggled to find openings in the passing game when defenses smothered A.J. Green.

In Eifert’s absence, Kroft made a big impact on the offense, catching a career-high seven touchdowns. The third-year pro from Rutgers exceeded all expectations in 2017 when he recorded 42 receptions for 404 yards and seven touchdowns. His longest reception was 59 yards.

Kroft’s seven touchdowns was sixth best among all NFL tight ends, trailing the likes of Jimmy Graham, Rob Gronkowski, Kyle Rudolph, Zach Ertz and Travis Kelce. His 42 receptions ranked him No. 21 among all tight ends.

Still, Kroft didn’t make the same level of impact that a healthy Eifert has consistently made during his days in stripes. Problem is, Eifert has never played a full 16-game season for the Bengals in his five-year career with the team.

In 2015, he had 13 touchdowns and was just unstoppable in the red zone. He helped take attention off of Green that season as well. It was the last season Green had 10-plus touchdowns. That was also when the Bengals had a franchise-best 8-0 start and had one of the league’s top offenses until Andy Dalton went down with his thumb injury.

That’s the kind of team Cincinnati is trying to get back to being, so obviously, a healthy Eifert could do wonders for that.